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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28045638">waiting with open arms</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ceraunophiliac/pseuds/ceraunophiliac'>ceraunophiliac</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Adventures of Child Dream [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Age Regression/De-Aging, Blind Character, Blind Dream, Blood and Injury, Child Dream, DreamSMP - Freeform, Family Dynamics, Fight Scene, Fluff, How Do I Tag, No Angst, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Puffy is protective over Dream, Scars, Wtf am I doing, angst in later chapters, chapters, nothing else to add. read notes i guess, yet - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-11 01:09:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,206</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28045638</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ceraunophiliac/pseuds/ceraunophiliac</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Dream liked the night. Liked the way the wind blew the hood of his cloak down to ruffle his dirty blond hair. Liked the way the trees bent to brush the porcelain mask he wore. He did not, however, enjoy the high pitched cackles of the witch he heard in the distance. He fought the best he could, but the next thing he knew was his knees hitting the forest floor and the world of pure black welcoming him with open arms.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Cara | CaptainPuffy &amp; Clay | Dream, Cara | CaptainPuffy &amp; Niki | Nihachu, Cara | CaptainPuffy &amp; Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream &amp; Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), No Romantic Relationship(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Adventures of Child Dream [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2054382</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>667</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Download fics</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>waiting with open arms</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello! So, this is an idea I got from a video where Dream took off his armor and literally just followed Puffy around like a puppy. I was going to write a lot more, but I broke 2k words and decided to break it down into chapters instead! </p><p>I really like this idea. Shout out to my friends who helped me read it over. The chapters are going to be more like small snapshots of Dream getting up to stuff while Puffy does her best to protect him, now acting as his mother. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!</p><p>(And who knows, maybe comment some ideas you want to see for Child Dream and Motherly Puffy. Maybe I'll be accepting requests ;) yet to be determined)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The night fell quickly, much quicker than Dream had expected. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Winter is coming</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he mused to himself as the last bit of sunlight sank beneath the horizon. Nights nowadays were often quiet, everyone preferring to spend it in the new L’Manburg. Everyone other than Dream, at least. The god of the server preferred adventuring, making the best of the dark hours. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dream liked the night. Liked the way the wind blew the hood of his cloak down to ruffle his dirty blond hair, giggling as he murmured his hellos. Liked the way the trees bent to brush the porcelain mask he wore, their small whispers of greetings reaching his ears. The cloaked man enjoyed the way the small forest animals scampered around him, gathering things for their home as their predators slept. Yes, Dream liked the night.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He did not, however, enjoy the high pitched cackles of the witch he heard in the distance, nor the rattle of bones as skeletons walked aimlessly or the groans of the undead. He huffed as he moved through the forest, acutely aware of the battle axe strapped across his broad back. His hand hovered slightly over the dagger hidden in his waistband as he continued forward, occasionally nudging branches out of his way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The witch’s cackle was closer than before, he noted as his ears twitched. He slowed his pace, listening carefully for footsteps. He heard them on both sides of him, and he realized with a small sense of horror that there wasn’t only one witch. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There were three, one on the left and two on the right.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Calming himself, he breathed in, readjusting his cloak and readying one hand on the handle of his axe. Three witches weren’t that bad, he’d taken worse. He waited until one got close enough before jumping into action, slashing his axe into where he assumed the witch to be. A smirk graced his lips as he heard the cry of pain and the rapid drinking of a health potion. He unsheathed the dagger in his waistband, flinging with precision as he turned around, backing up just in time for the glass of a potion to hit the ground where he was previously standing. The small </span>
  <em>
    <span>thump</span>
  </em>
  <span> of the dagger hitting its mark accompanied by a cut off scream let him know at least once witch was down, the dagger being a killing blow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The god stayed silent as he fought, dancing out of the way of each potion. The longer he fought the witches, the more irked he became, hearing them sip potions of healing after every hit. As one witch threw her potion, so did the other. And then, Dream made a mistake: slipping out of the way of one glass bottle and landing in the splash zone of the other. He grunted as the glass crunched under his steel-toe combat boots, coughing as the potion made its way into his system. He bent over, reaching into the boots to pull out two identical daggers. He threw one as he stood, hearing the witch wail as it entered what he assumed to be her sternum. The next one he made sure embedded itself deep within her throat, effectively killing her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He coughed again as he went after the last witch, spinning as she threw another potion. His battle axe connected with her neck as the potion hit the ground. He groaned, pulling his axe out of the fresh corpse. If she hit him with a poison potion, he didn’t know what level of nor what type of poison it was. The forest was quiet, letting his heightened hearing search for other sounds. Finding none, he sluggishly continued on his way, battle axe strapped to his back once more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>By the time he reached the ends of the forest and heard the </span>
  <em>
    <span>whoosh </span>
  </em>
  <span>of the nearby nether portal, the man could barely stand, his body swaying with the trees. A gasp escaped him as his knees buckled, forcing him to the ground, where he stayed until he could hear nothing but a high pitch whine. His eyes fluttered shut.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>/ - / - | - \ - \ </b>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span> Puffy laughed with Niki as they walked towards the swirling purple of the nether portal, the warm sun shining down on them. Niki had wanted company with her, so Puffy volunteered. They had been talking the whole way there, occasionally making kissy faces at one another, just to get the other to giggle. They paused once they reached the obsidian frame, chatting idly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you want me to go in with you? It can be dangerous,” Puffy asked, voicing her thoughts to her grey-eyed friend. Niki shook her head, an appreciative smile on her face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ranboo is waiting for me on the other side, I think. We’ll be okay, just gathering some glowstone and quartz,” Niki responded, bouncing on her heels. The shorter girl nodded, sharing a small side hug with the younger girl before watching her enter the portal. She waited until Niki passed through before walking around the frame, heading towards the trees in the distance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Might as well get wood while I’m here,</span>
  </em>
  <span> she thought to herself, knowing she was running low. Puffy hummed to herself as she moved along, until she was broken from her thoughts. She let out a surprised gasp as something hard hit her foot, head tilting down to see just what she ran into. There, lying idly on the ground in front of her, was a double-headed battle axe, gleaming with a purple shine. Her brows furrowed. Only one person on the server had such a weapon, the axe being the only one of its kind.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Something happened to Dream</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Puffy realized, fear emerging deep within her chest. She crouched, picking up the axe, looking around the area as she stood back up. Her body was on autopilot as she moved forward, hands closely tightened around the axe’s strong handle, not that she knew how to properly use it. Puffy looked around hesitantly, only a few feet from the forest borders.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dream?” she called out, voice cautious. “Dream, are you out here? Are you okay?” She paused, straining to listen for any sounds. Her head whipped to the left, the sound of a stick snapping alerting her. “Dream, is that you?” Puffy’s voice was gentle as she spoke, not knowing what had happened nor the state he was in. Her eyes watched the area intently, roaming over the trees. After a few seconds of tense silence, she took a step towards the left, only to hear another twig snap. A frown made its way onto her face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dream? I’m not… I’m not gonna hurt you. Where are you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She waited for another sound, pausing when she instead received the view of an overly large green cloak on a small body. The woman’s head tilted, confusion painted on her face. The small figure was standing partially behind a tree, and she could see the small hands tentatively holding onto the trunk. The hood of the cloak covered their face, but she could only assume the figure was Dream.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Really, really small Dream.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?” she whispered to herself, lowering herself to the ground while setting the axe aside. “What in the hell....” Puffy was quiet as she adjusted, legs crossed. “Hey, buddy. Are you Dream? Or do you know where he is?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The person under the cloak slowly inched closer to her before pointing to themself. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. She had been spot on with her first question. She closed her eyes, taking in a few deep breaths. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Okay. This is... weird. But, okay. Dream is small. Almost like a... like a kid. He can’t be older than five</span>
  </em>
  <span>, she realized. When she reopened her eyes, Dream had moved even closer, no longer hiding behind the tree. Puffy searched the ground around her, hand reaching for the handle of his axe as she stared at him. She held it out to him as an offering, a signal she wasn’t going to hurt him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you want your axe back? I found it over by the portal.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Just as she started to worry he wasn’t going to take it, he surged forward, pushing the axe in her hands to the ground before tumbling into her lap. His small hands clutched her shirt, face buried into her shoulder. Feeling the tears soak through her shirt, she quickly realized his mask was missing. Her arms wrapped around his small, trembling body, hugging him close to her. One hand reached up to push down his hood only to run through mid-length dirty blond hair. She shushed him gently, softly swaying as she held him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They stayed like that for a few minutes before Dream pulled away, reaching up to cover his face. Puffy looked around before zeroing on his mask lying just behind the tree he was at. It was far too big for him now, but she put him next to her and stood to retrieve it anyway. When she turned around, he was looking past her, hands wringing together. He was nervous. With a small sense of shock, Puffy understood why he wore the mask.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The first thing to catch her attention was the cluster of small scars littered around his jaw. The blond had a large scar running through his pine green eyes, which were covered with a milky white film. Her mouth almost dropped open. Dream was blind.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Dream, it’s okay. Are you nervous ‘cause you don’t have your mask on?” she asked in a kind, gentle voice. His blank gaze seemed to lock onto her, which she made a small mental note of (</span>
  <em>
    <span>he must be sensitive to sound</span>
  </em>
  <span>). “C’mere, follow my voice.” She waited until he was stood in front of her before slowly pressing his mask into his hands. “It’s too big to fit, buddy. I’ll have to make you a new one. Can I pick you up?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dream nodded, holding out his hands, one still tightly clutching the porcelain mask. Puffy made sure to let him know where she was as she lifted up, shifting him onto her back where he wrapped his small legs and arms around her. She felt him bury his face into her shoulder once more. She bent to pick up his axe as they passed by it, tucking it into her belt. The woman hummed softly as she walked towards L’Manburg, allowing herself to delve into her thoughts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>How long was he out there? At least a few hours, right? How the hell did this happen? I guess it could’ve been a potion or something along those lines. I’m surprised he trusted me so quickly. I should talk to Niki when I can, she can probably help</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Puffy was snapped out of her when she heard a heavy sigh. She paused, readjusting the child on her back. After a bit of jostling and no response, she called his name, only to receive light mumbling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A bright grin grew on the older woman’s face as she came to understand what had happened. Dream had fallen asleep to the rhythm of her walking. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Poor kiddo must’ve been out there a lot longer than I thought,” she mumbled to herself, paying more attention as the newly rebuilt country came into her sights. Puffy let out a small groan as she shifted Dream to her front, making sure his face was still buried in her shoulder before walking forward into the town. She held one hand on Dream’s head as she moved across the platforms, other arm securely under his legs, keeping his tiny body close to hers. Blue eyes scanned the town, lighting up when they landed on the person she was looking for.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Philza!” her voice rang out, which she instantly regretted as the child she held stirred from his sleep. The aforementioned looked up from whatever he was doing, and she watched with amusement as his eyes widened at the sight of the small figure attached to her. The man beckoned her towards him, seemingly forgetting all about the papers right in front of him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Who’s this? And where did you find them?” Phil asked as he ushered her inside his house. The look of surprise had yet to leave his face, causing a small giggle to erupt from her mouth. His eyes roamed over the large green cloak that hung off the child, and he tried his best to stop himself from outright passing out. “Is that... is that </span>
  <em>
    <span>Dream</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” he asked, an incredulous look coming to light.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The shorter of the two nodded as best she could. “I’ll explain once I put him down. He fell asleep on my way over here.” Now, it was Phil’s turn to nod as he turned around and motioned for her to follow him upstairs. Once the pair arrived, Phil drew back the blankets to the small bed he had. Puffy took care to make sure Dream was set down gently, hand slipping from behind his head once he was settled in the bed. Philza covered him, tucking the blankets underneath his slender shoulders before walking back downstairs, Puffy following not far behind.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Phil turned around, arms crossed and one eyebrow quirked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, explain.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope you all enjoyed! Leave comments about things you'd like to see happen. I already have the next few chapters planned out. :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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